


Oh the Elements (i do not fear)

by WednesdaysDaughter



Category: Wonder Woman (2017)
Genre: Acceptance, Angst, Canonical Character Death, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Falling In Love, Greek Mythology - Freeform, Grief/Mourning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-07
Updated: 2017-06-07
Packaged: 2018-11-10 06:51:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11122068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WednesdaysDaughter/pseuds/WednesdaysDaughter
Summary: There was no body to bury, but that didn’t stop Etta and the others from laying him to rest. On the outskirts of the cemetery where the Candy family slept, there stood a pale white boulder surrounded by the brightest flowers ever seen in London





	Oh the Elements (i do not fear)

**Author's Note:**

> This came to me in the shower this morning and wouldn't leave me alone so here you go! 
> 
> Title from A Fine Frenzy's "Elements" (one of my all-time favorites)

He may have fallen from the sky where the air was calm and clean, but it is the water that calls to her with every lapping wave to retrieve what has been given.

It swells with every second she pushes through the blue until she reaches the unknown and its ancient voice is quieted the second she touches him. The water offers no resistance against her powerful strides, guiding her along to the safety the sandy shore offers in the distance. Droplets caress her skin, cooling what the sun would burn if given half a chance – fire knows no kindness.

A lesson Diana would learn soon enough.

When he stirs, the sea crashes with relief behind them until chaos reigns down in bombs and bullets. It drowns the men with dark hearts when given the chance and soothes the wounded ones of those who’ve seen death with their own eyes.

Many Amazons finds themselves visiting the beach at twilight, trying to make sense of the destruction wrought by a handful of men. The sea offers no platitudes: It listens to their grief and carries it far from the island.

When Diana arrives at the boats the water rocks them gently to ease their passage beyond Themyscira. Before she loses sight of her home Diana lowers a hand into the warm waters and gives thanks to Poseidon.

“The ocean is notorious for taking; rarely does it give. It would be foolish to venture forth and not thank that which spared your life.” Diana explains when she sees the way Steve stares at her while praying softly under her breath.

Confusion melts into understanding and he turns as if to speak to his own Gods so Diana gives him a moment.

They curl next to each other surrounded by a vast stretch of blue and Diana dreams of gentle waves and a man with eyes as deep as the sea.

 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 

The air bites at her chin playfully and sends her hair spilling past her shoulders until it block’s Steve’s sight.

His laugh is carried down the line until Chief looks up in time to see Steve helping Diana pull her hair back. He listens carefully; lets the breeze tell him a story that the water began days ago and his heart aches briefly.

“They are god-touched,” he tells Charlie and Sameer later that night after watching Diana charge into the fires of battle. The atmosphere is joyous and the winds bring snow much to everyone’s delight; none more than Diana’s.

“I don’t know about all that,” Charlie lounges against the piano without a care, but Sameer and Chief lock eyes and nod. They’ve seen wondrous things on this journey and are wise enough to know when bigger things are at play.

Diana spins and the wind twirls with her; fueling her laughter until Steve is helpless against it. They dance as if their feet have wings that would send them into the starry sky.

‘ _I might never come down_ ,’ Steve marvels absently with his eyes locked on Diana’s brilliant smile. He may have reservations about her talk of Ares and other Gods, but for a moment he is certain he was brought to her for a reason.

Hermes hears his unspoken gratitude and urges the north wind to be kind in the night as it raps against their window. When morning breaks a gust will nearly knock Diana over and Steve will stand firm behind her; arms steadying her steps until a pale blush paints his cheeks and Diana gains her footing.

“Thank you Steve,” she’ll say softly and instead of reaching out to cup his face Diana will reach down to lace their fingers together.

He will not pull away.

 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 

Fire is unforgiving.

It takes until there is nothing left: And while it may occasionally give way to rebirth and new life, the fire burning on the airfield wishes nothing of the sort. It came to lay waste to the ground it touches and it will take everything that stands in its way.

Diana does not burn easily.

Flames lick at her skin, but she brushes them away without a second thought. Smoke provides her cover as she lashes out against Ares, but he is ready. With each explosion, fire is born and it sets to task until no building remains.

Diana can feel the fire in her gut threaten to consume her, but Steve’s touch cools the flames long enough for her to concentrate. His words blur together and there’s a desperation in his eyes that churns her gut.

“I can do it, let me do it!” she pleads into the dry air that scalds her throat.

Steve shakes his head and presses his watch into her hand before running from her; running away from their future. Diana nearly follows, but the scorching heat reminds her that she has her own mission. When the metal curls around her body nearly crushing her into dust, Diana’s eyes fly to the dark sky where Steve is.

She cannot catch her breath, whether it is from Ares or fear she does not know. Diana feels Steve’s eyes slide shut and when the plane is engulfed in flames so is she. It fills her to the brim and she is the embodiment of fire’s fierce destruction. A wave of power stronger than she’s ever felt consumes her and lights an inferno deep within.  

Diana takes without mercy and Hephaestus watches with a frown on his face as she breathes the fire in and destroys without thought. Her despair lights up the sky and before she can crush Dr. Poison, a swift wind rushes past her and Steve’s voice puts out the flames.

“I love you.”

Something kinder burns in Diana’s heart when she kills Ares: No less powerful than before – but rather, healthier. The lava has cooled and when the flowers of spring begin to emerge Diana turns her face towards the sun and greets the heat like an old friend.

 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 

There is a different kind of green in man’s world.

Diana waters the plants on her windowsill and thinks of Themyscira’s lush fields of flowers no man has ever – or will ever – see.  The daisies thrive under her care and as the years pass, Diana makes sure to always have something growing in her home.

Purple larkspur’s and Forget-Me-Nots remind her of Steve.

Her feet touch the ground of many countries before she settles in France. Her boots have gotten stuck in the mud from German trenches and she has tasted Vietnam’s dirt. Russian snow has dusted her hair and she was finding sand from Afghanistan in the cracks of her armor for weeks after returning home.

She has seen western fields of wildflowers in her visits to America and touched the ancient stones in Ireland that sang stories she’d never heard before. Her trip to Greece plucked at Diana’s heartstrings until she head to leave for fear of crying a river that would rival the Styx: She missed Themyscira, she missed her mother…

She missed Steve.  

There was no body to bury, but that didn’t stop Etta and the others from laying him to rest. On the outskirts of the cemetery where the Candy family slept, there stood a pale white boulder surrounded by the brightest flowers ever seen in London. People often stopped to admire the simple memorial to a man they’d never met, but they all walked away feeling as if Steve Trevor had been an old friend and their eyes shone with inexplicable tears.

Diana visits when she can, though between his watch and the few pictures that survived the century, he is always with her. She sees his eyes in the oceans she crosses; hears his laugh in the playful breeze. Diana feels the way he touched her with reverence every time her hands stray close to the fireplace and when her bare feet touch the soft grass and Gaia reaches up to welcome her home, Diana feels Steve’s love deep within her bones.

She is never alone.

**Author's Note:**

> I just love Greek mythology so much and I had such a fun time including Hades in my last fic so I thought 'why not?' and this happened. I'd like to think I'll write a fic where they're reunited, but I'm not there yet. I'm still grieving lol.


End file.
